Creating & living a truly authentic life, living in "Our Little House In The Big Woods". Raising many children, working in the arts, writing, film making, learning to create quilts, painting, exploring gardening, traveling, restoring a vintage dollhouse, hunting for antique treasures & chasing our big dream to live by the sea, all on a thrifty, frugal budget.

October 30, 2015

One of the items we included in our wish list for this new house was space for a true Art Studio. Not the corner of a room but an authentic, dedicated, "get messy" room. We built it in but for the sake of the budget, we chose to not completely finish it at this time. Hopefully by spring we'll be able to continue the final pieces. For now, I've put my art projects on hold. But it's been driving me crazy so my dh helped me put together our "Mini Studio" this past week. And here it is:

What's this? A corner of a room?

Not ideal and not what we envisioned.

But for now, this view will have to do!

A spot not being used and an easy choice.

I love the airiness and lightness of this corner.

A place for my fabric, lace and embellishments.

A sweet, floral lamp that I bought from a lovely lady,

for the tidy sum of just $15. A bit Laura Ashley. Love it!

Pretty shelf for some favorite treasures.

Shells gathered from our most recent trek to our

little piece of Heaven ~ Salt Spring Island.

My tray of projects and pieces to work on. The tiny

framed print is an original oil painting.

I'm very excited to have a spot to create art, to reflect on life and in my pursuits. When the true Art Studio is all ready and I move my stuff down the hall, I think I'll really miss this temporary abode. I can see some great things happening in this sunny and quiet spot.

October 26, 2015

Thanksgiving in Canada is always the second weekend in October. It's a long weekend and families choose to have the traditional meal either on the Sunday or the Monday. Each year, we make that decision based on who is able to attend. I love it when we decide to have it on Sunday, as it's a busy day and having a day off on the Monday is an extra bonus!

This year, our little guy had to visit with his dad, so we decided to postpone Thanksgiving and wait until he would be back home. We chose the weekend of October 25th as our alternative Thanskgiving Dinner date. As we've had a long and colorful fall, this was an easy option. After moving at the end of June to our new home, performing in two Fringe Festivals, putting on two big events (August 30th and October 4th), and getting our preschool year underway at our centre, we then decided to book our holiday to begin on the 10th, when we would have normally started Thanksgiving. We came home on the 20th and we're now back in to routine. This week, getting ready for our dinner was a busy time. But so worth our efforts, in order to provide a wonderful meal, to visit with family and to take time to reflect on the bounty of our life, the opportunities available to us, the abilities we have and the safe environment we live in. We have so much to be thankful for and the thing I am most impressed with is how we reflect these feelings often, not just one day a year. Feeling fortunate to be healthy, warm, full and blessed.

October 17, 2015

One of our favorite activities when we visit this tiny island is the famous Saturday Market. People arrive by sea plane and ferry to visit each Saturday. Everything must be handmade, baked or grown organically. A neat variety of products and every time we come, we see new ventures into "home made". We purposely plan our treks to this island so that we arrive on Saturday morning, giving us time to enjoy the Market in the afternoon (it ends at 4 pm each week) and then we stay at least 10 days, so we get 2 Saturday Markets in by the time we're gone. This time, we also had a chance to visit the new Tuesday Market, a smaller version but still a great time. Last week, when we arrived, the rain had started and the wind had really picked up, so a few stalls had already packed up to leave early, so not all the vendors were present. We still enjoyed it but it was eerily different without the sound of laughter, the smells of fresh baking and the eclectic music that is normally present.

October 15, 2015

Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness day. Tonight all around the world at 7 p.m., families who have experienced the death of a baby during pregnancy or anytime after birth, gathered together in public places or alone at home, to light candles to remember their special, precious, tiny beings. Tonight, my dh and I lit two candles for our family. Two candles to represent both the stillbirths we have endured and the early losses with our miscarriages. The two small flower pillows represent our son B and our daughter C, both born too soon, but forever remembered in our hearts. The six small shells represent our tiniest babies, all six, three B's and three C's, who left their footprints on our lives but didn't stay long enough for us to capture their heart beats before they stopped. the bunny pillow is heart shaped and represents our organization that supports these special families. And the lavender, all eight pieces, reminds us how the color and the scent give us peace and healing.

Early evening light. Soft lapping ocean tide.

A different perspective, looking down.

Close up of our symbols.

And four hours later, our one candle is still burning. It's moments like these that I wish I could be where ever they are, to look down and see the "Wave of Light" around the globe that all these incredible families have created together, and alone. What a beautiful sight it would be to see.